Influence of Electronic Medical Record Management Systems on the Disease Activity and Frequency of Outpatient Visits of Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background To investigate the impact of an electronic medical record management system (EMRMS) on disease activity and the frequency of outpatient visits among patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Methods We identified 652 patients with AS who were followed up for at least 1 year before and after the first Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score (ASDAS) assessment and compared the number of outpatient visits and average visit time within 1 year before and after the initial ASDAS assessment. Finally, we analyzed 201 patients with AS who had complete data and received ≥ 3 continuous ASDAS assessments at an interval of 3 months, and we compared the results of the second and third ASDAS assessments with those of the first. Results The number of annual outpatient visits increased after ASDAS assessment (5.8 ± 3.4 vs. 5.4 ± 3.4, p